A young Hull boy is fighting for his life in hospital after being diagnosed with an extremely rare brain condition affecting just 150 people across the world.

Four-year-old Blake Hostick was told he had a stomach virus and was sent home from the doctors after his mum noticed he was unwell.

But Blake, of east Hull, only got worse during the next two days, and on the second night after being sent home became violently sick.

The next morning, on February 1, mum Kirsty Hostick called for an ambulance and he was rushed to Hull Royal Infirmary. They thought he had dehydration from the stomach virus.

Blake Hostick

Miss Hostick, 31, said: "We took him to the doctors as he was unwell, but they said it was just a bug and sent us home.

"Then in the early hours of the morning he was violently sick and became really droopy so we called for an ambulance. We thought it was dehydration at first but on the way to hospital he appeared to be losing his sight. It was as if he was looking right through us.

"By the time we got to hospital he could not move, see or hear and we knew there was something seriously wrong."

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Blake became so weak he could not even hold his own head up and could hardly speak. He lost his sight and became unresponsive.

Miss Hostick said: "He just began to deteriortate. The first thing was he began to slur his words. Then he started acting like he couldn't see. Then he was completely unresponsive."

The little boy deteriorated so quickly he began to have seizures, so was sedated and put into an induced coma.

Blake Hostick and his mum

Miss Hostick said: "I was absolutely terrified and devastated.

"No one could tell us what was happening to our little boy."

On February 2, Blake was transferred to intensive care at Sheffield Children's Hospital and put on life support. Numerous tests were carried out on him and he was put into isolation after it was shown he had Flu B in his blood - the cause of Acute Necrotizing Encephalitis.

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She said: "Blake has been in hospital for seven weeks on Friday, but he came off life support after two weeks - which doctors say is amazing. They said in most cases people are on life support for months, and it takes that long to get to that stage - if they get to that stage.

"Everyday I'm working with him, reading with him, showing him pictures and doing physio, trying to do anything I can to jog his memory and to keep his body working.

"We've had so much support and we're so grateful for everything and how proud we are of him.

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"We just want to raise awareness of the condition and let people know its out there."

As Miss Hostick remains at Blake's bedside, she has been separated from her two other children Haydon, 10, and Kayleb, six, who remain in Hull with their grandparents.

Friends of Miss Hostick have now set up a fundraising page to help her and her family through the most difficult time in their lives. Anyone wishing to donate to Blake's fund can do so by clicking here.